Thursday, April 5, 2018

Nature never created a houseplant. The plants we call houseplants are native to various, generally tropical, areas of the world, and in all cases their natural habitat is outdoors. It’s not surprising, then, that houseplants moved outside during the warm summer months grow better and more vigorously than those kept inside.

Moving houseplants outside can be a little tricky. The plants become accustomed to lower light conditions while indoors. Initially, move houseplants outside to shady locations where they receive no direct sunlight. Plants that like low-light conditions will stay in those locations all summer. Others that prefer more light can gradually be introduced to some direct sun over the next couple of weeks.

Saturday, March 31, 2018

One of the traditional signs of Easter is the Easter lily with its large white flowers and its sweet aroma that fills the room. If you have one or more lilies from Easter, you can extend the joy of your plants with a little care.

The Easter lily is native to southern Japan. Prior to World War II, the bulbs were imported from there. Today more than 95 percent of all Easter lily bulbs are produced on just 10 farms along the Pacific coast in a half-mile wide and 12-mile-long strip of land on the California and Oregon border.

Most of the bulbs are the 'Nellie White' variety that James White named after his wife. Every few years, each grower selects a few plants to determine if a new variety can be developed with desirable production qualities.

Friday, March 16, 2018

Longer days. Birdsong. Growing Grass. These are all indicators that it's time to pull out the lawn mower and get it ready for another season.

It has been sitting in the back of the garage or shed all winter - maybe even under a pile of rags — collecting dust and moisture. There is probably some rust on the metal parts and caked debris underneath.

Of course, all we think we need to do is just top it off with gas and crank it up. We're ready to attack the jungle of grass blades.

Unfortunately, most lawn mowers are not given the adequate attention they need in spring. Little thought is given to the actual mower itself. Most people have probably not thought about the mower since they bought it.

Saturday, March 10, 2018

Here it goes again, that compulsion to count and figure and cut and scrimp. Like some actuary, I'm compelled to calculate the costs and consequences of every action and exchange.

Air-drying laundry on a clothesline saves nearly 50 cents a load.

Add two weeks between those monthly haircuts and save at least $60 a year.

Buy heating oil in midsummer and save another $50 or more.

April is a month for adding up; the government makes it so. After laboring over investment tax credits and itemized deductions and capital loss carryforwards a person's perceptions change. I'm consumed with frugality, obsessed with prudence.

These are the sounds of the house mouse, mus musculus, one of the least welcome of guests and most difficult to dissuade. This uninvited visitor will eat, or chew on, almost anything and defecate everywhere. He contaminates food, causes damage to structures and property, and carries dangerous diseases.

Introduced by 16th century pilgrims in the holds of their Atlantic-crossing ships, house mice followed the progress of Europeans in the New World, traveling in wagons and rucksacks and saddlebags and trains and trucks and planes across the continent and back, occupying pantries from Maine to Malibu.

Grayish brown with a naked scaly tail, the pointy-snouted house mouse puts down 50 droppings a day, on average, and gives off 300 squirts of urine in between. Messy, ugly, and presumptuous, this uninvited guest inspires desperate measures.